Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/649887
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 6 MARCH 2016 Sport 54 TWO thirds of the job is done after Murray followed his swift win over Taro Daniel on Friday by teaming up with brother Jamie for a 6-3 6-2 6-4 triumph over outclassed Yoshihito Nishioka and Yasutaka Uchiyama in the doubles. That gave Britain a 2-1 lead at Birmingham's Barclaycard Arena, and victory for Murray on Sunday over Kei Nishikori would clinch the tie for the defending champi- ons. But world number six Nishikori is the highest-ranked player Mur- ray has ever faced in Davis Cup and is likely to present a stern challenge. They have played six times be- fore with Murray winning five, but Nishikori's only victory came on a similar indoor surface at the World Tour Finals in London in 2014. Murray said: "I played well against him last year. I played him a couple of times. He's ranked six in the world, so he's one of the best. "It's obviously going to be ex- tremely tough, but I'm playing well and hopefully I can play a good one (on Sunday) and try and seal the win." Murray took a month-long break from competitive tennis prior to the tie to spend time with new baby daughter Sophia and had not been sure how he would perform. But the world number two did more than enough in his singles and then stepped it up in the dou- bles, with his serve working par- ticularly well in both matches. Andy and Jamie have now won four doubles rubbers in a row in Davis Cup, but this was a differ- ent prospect to the previous ones as they were huge favourites at the start and were never remotely troubled. Nishioka and Uchiyama are both outside the top 100 in sin- gles and doubles and did not force a single break point in the match. Twenty-year-old Nishioka said: "We got so much pressure from Andy. When he was returning, we didn't know how to take the points from him." As expected, Britain made a change to their nominated team, with Andy replacing Dom Inglot after suffering no ill effects from his clash with Daniel. The impression on Friday had been that Nishikori would al- so step in but instead he had a watching brief as Japan opted to keep him fresh for Sunday. Murray does not expect their different roles to impact either negatively, saying: "For me, it probably helps because I haven't played for five weeks. "Kei has played in Memphis and Acapulco, so he's played a bunch the last few weeks "It helps me just to get my eye in a little bit on returns and get a bit more confidence in my serve, which went extremely well (on Saturday). Hopefully I can do the same again (on Sunday)." Japan captain Minuro Ueda did not make a final decision on his team until their practice session a couple of hours before the match and is hoping it will prove the right one. He said: "Having done the prac- tice, we thought this pair was better prepared. We did think winning the doubles was quite difficult for us. "I have a feeling that Kei and Andy's match is everything. Al- though Andy is higher in the rankings, I feel the indoor surface gives Kei more of a chance." Should Nishikori pull off the up- set, the tie would come down to a fifth rubber between Dan Evans and Daniel. Evans is ranked 70 places lower at 157 but has won two of their previous three matches, includ- ing coming from 5-0 down in the final set to win at a Challenger event in Vancouver last summer. Captain Leon Smith said: "The good thing is that his game is in a good place and it's always good when you have two cracks at it. "I think lots of people look at Andy versus Kei but there's an- other match if required, and that's always a good position to be in." ATHLETICS TENNIS Malta 113k Tri joins Ocean Lava Planet Family Rebrands to Ocean Lava Malta TEN years since the first edition of the Malta 113k Tri kicked off, the ever growing and only long dis- tance triathlon race in Malta has moved on to a new chapter of its journey by joining the Ocean Lava Planet family, bringing the family up to 12 destinations. Ocean Lava Planet is brainchild of Kenneth Gasque, the founder of Ironman Lanzarote and all round living legend of triathlon, Ocean Lava Planet is made up of ordinary people, who are passionate about triathlon. Ocean Lava Planet is headquartered in Lanzarote, the unique volcanic island in the At- lantic. "We are proud to have joined this new and yet ever growing fam- ily of triathlon events. Ten years have passed since the Malta 113k Tri kicked off, we have grown lo- cally and we have already started to make our mark on an interna- tional level – being part of Ocean Lava Planet will further grow our network and reinforce our ef- forts to make Malta's position in the international triathlon scene stronger" said Charlie Demanuele, Malta 113k Tri Race founder and Director. Ocean Lava Planet is growing steadily and is currently represent- ed in family is Wales, Denmark, Ukraine, The Netherlands, Ma- deira, Montenegro and of course Spain where it hosts five events – Aranjuez, La Manga, Lanzarote, Tenerife, and Santander. "Ocean Lava Planet is very proud to announce the exten- sion of Ocean Lava races, and we welcome our newest destination, Malta who we are confident will carry the spirit of the Ocean Lava Planet philosophy and it is our hope that many athletes will enjoy the celebration together with our new partners in Malta" comment- ed Kenneth Gasque, Ocean Lava Planet Founder. "Ocean Lava, is more than a race, it is a movement, where like minded people feel alive together with the elements of nature in the sea, the wind, the sun, in the open air in what I call the biggest Cathedral "the big blue sky" and we look forward to Malta inspiring us all." The Garmin Ocean Lava Malta triathlon, which is also designated by the Malta Triathlon Federation as the Long Distance National Tri- athlon Championships, will take place on Sunday 15th May. Final preparations are being un- dertaken and a new race route is expected to be announced shortly. Race organisers are expecting a good show from foreign athletes as was the case in the 2015 edition when athletes from Italy, Slovenia, United Kingdom, Poland and the Czech Republic took part in the event. The Garmin Ocean Lava Malta Triathlon is being supported by Garmin, Go & Fun, The Cyclist and Mochika. More information about the race can be obtained by sending an email to info@oceanlavamalta. com. Andy Murray ready for tough test Andy Murray faces one of the biggest tests of his Davis Cup career if he is to complete the clean sweep once again and guide Great Britain to victory over Japan. Andy Murray